running.5

After I commented to NS this week that I was getting a bit bored of my standard running route, he suggested that I try running on the beach. Seemed logical to me. I probably won't be living this close to gorgeous beaches for my entire life, and I should take advantage of it while I can. So on Saturday morning, I headed out to Seven Mile Beach shortly after sunrise.

photo credit: barefootrunners.org

First of all, the photo above is not me. Those might even be man legs. Not sure. But the point is that I ran barefoot. That might seem like a no-brainer, but I saw several runners wearing shoes on the beach that morning. I figured I'd embrace the full beach experience by shedding the shoes in favor of sensing the sand.

It was an interesting run, primarily because I ran on a portion of SMB that I've never visited before, running from the marine park at Cemetery Beach to SMB Public Beach and back. It felt nice to run right at the water's edge, getting cooled off every time a wave met the shore. I didn't heat up as quickly as normal, but I felt myself getting winded faster. The sand was very soft, and most of the beach had a pretty steep pitch to the water, so between my calves getting the work out of their lives and my feet/legs/hips striking the ground at an uneven level, let's just say I'm feeling it today. There were also portions of the beach that boasted what I call raw beauty - unmanicured and full of rocks to step around.  But I think it was an effective, challenging workout, and just the kind of preparation to engage in before next year's Dashing Thru the Sand event held right after Christmas.

One final note: For all you barefoot running enthusiasts, more power to you, but don't assume I'm jumping on the bandwagon. I prefer not to do anything barefoot. Just sayin.